1 hurtle | Definition of hurtle
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hurtle

verb
hur·​tle | \ ˈhÉ™r-tᵊl How to pronounce hurtle (audio) \
hurtled; hurtling\ ˈhÉ™rt-​liÅ‹ How to pronounce hurtling (audio) , ˈhÉ™r-​tᵊl-​iÅ‹ \

Definition of hurtle

intransitive verb

: to move rapidly or forcefully

transitive verb

: hurl, fling
Other Words from hurtle Synonyms & Antonyms Hurdle vs. Hurtle Example Sentences Learn More about hurtle

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Other Words from hurtle

hurtle noun

Hurdle vs. Hurtle

Indistinguishable in speech, the words hurtle and hurdle can be a confusing pair.

Hurtle is a verb with two meanings: "to move rapidly or forcefully," as in "The stone was hurtling through the air," and "to hurl or fling," as in "I hurtled the stone into the air." Note that the first use is intransitive: the stone isn't hurtling anything; it itself is simply hurtling. The second use is transitive: something was hurtled—in this case, a stone.

Hurdle is both a noun and a verb. As a noun, its most common meanings have to do with barriers: the ones that runners leap over, and the metaphorical extension of these, the figurative barriers and obstacles we try to similarly overcome. The verb hurdle has two meanings, and they are directly related to these. It can mean "to leap over especially while running," as in "She hurdled the fence," and it can mean "to overcome or surmount," as in "They've had to hurdle significant financial obstacles." The verb hurdle is always transitive; that is, there's always a thing being hurdled, whether it be a physical obstacle or a metaphorical one.

Examples of hurtle in a Sentence

Boulders hurtled down the hill. We kept to the side of the road as cars and trucks hurtled past us. The protesters hurtled bottles at the police. He hurtled himself into the crowd.
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Recent Examples on the Web

 The other is a battle for survival as a solitary human hurtles down a skyscraper of water, riding the boundary between life and death at mind bending speeds. — Don Riddell And Daniel Gallan, CNN, "Jurgen Klopp makes waves by welcoming surfer into Liverpool camp," 21 Aug. 2019 Strong winds hurtled off the frozen sea, and thick fog and clouds hung low over the tundra. — Neil Shea, National Geographic, "A thawing Arctic is heating up a new Cold War," 21 Aug. 2019 With a deafening roar and a burst of sparks, dozens of drag racing cars will hurtle down a short stretch of track at Sonoma Raceway this weekend. — Elena Shao, SFChronicle.com, "Car racing doesn’t sound eco-friendly, but Sonoma Raceway wants to change that," 26 July 2019 But as Britain and the European Union hurtle toward a no-deal Brexit, the contest Saturday seemed to be who is going to go down in history with the blame and the label: Mr. No-Deal. — Washington Post, "Will the real Mr. No-Deal step forward please?," 25 Aug. 2019 Data released Wednesday indicated that the German economy, which relies heavily on manufacturing, was hurtling toward recession and that Chinese factory production is expanding at the slowest pace in nearly two decades. — Karl Russell, BostonGlobe.com, "As recession concerns mount, dozens of central banks are cutting rates," 15 Aug. 2019 The baseball hurtled into the right-field corner for a home run . — Los Angeles Times, "Angels’ streak reaches new heights in ‘embarrassing’ loss to Red Sox," 9 Aug. 2019 The runaway train hurtled into the center of town shortly after midnight, with no one aboard to apply the brakes or sound a whistle to warn residents about the deadly cargo bearing down on them. — Ian Austen, New York Times, "A Runaway Train Explosion Killed 47, but Deadly Cargo Still Rides the Rails," 16 July 2019 Howdy, my name is Houston Mitchell and I’m pretty sure the Earth has been ripped from its orbit and is hurtling toward the sun. — Houston Mitchell, latimes.com, "The Sports Report: Melvin Gordon makes a serious demand," 12 July 2019

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'hurtle.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

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First Known Use of hurtle

14th century, in the meaning defined at intransitive sense

History and Etymology for hurtle

Middle English hurtlen to collide, frequentative of hurten to cause to strike, hurt

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More Definitions for hurtle

hurtle

verb
How to pronounce hurtle (audio)

English Language Learners Definition of hurtle

: to move or fall with great speed and force
: to cause (something or someone) to move or go with great speed and force

See the full definition for hurtle in the English Language Learners Dictionary

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